Free Library Blog - Posts by Rachel F.

Celebrate the 2013 Pennsylvania One Book Every Young Child with the Free Library of Philadelphia!

Rachel F. — 2013-03-28T14:59:00-05:00

The Free Library of Philadelphia is celebrating Pennsylvania’s eight annual One Book, Every Young Child selection, The Bus for Us by Suzanne Bloom! One Book, Every Young Child is a statewide reading initiative designed to highlight the impact of early literacy. The program emphasizes the importance of reading to children early and often AND engaging them in conversations about the books that are read.

Suzanne Bloom will be visiting the Free Library of Philadelphia!

Join us for an opportunity to meet Suzanne Bloom, the author of The Bus for Us. From a fire engine to a front loader, Ms. Bloom introduces young readers to a variety of vehicles through simple text and spirited illustrations. The Bus for Us is a beautiful picture book, perfect for sharing with young children!

Sunday, April 14th at 2:00 p.m.

Montgomery Auditorium

Parkway Central Library, 1901 Vine Street

215-686-5372

Young children and their caregivers are invited to join our children's librarians throughout the months of April and May for special storytimes featuring The Bus for Us. Below is a partial listing of dates and location. Just because your local library isn't on the list doesn't mean they aren't having a special event. Check with the Children's librarian at your local library to be sure.

Friday, April 5th at 10:30 a.m.

Roxborough Library, 6245 Ridge Avenue

215-685-2550

Tuesday, April 9th at 10:30 a.m.

Charles L. Durham Library, 3320 Haverford Avenue

215-685-7436

Wednesday, April 17th at 6:30pm

Torresdale Library, 3079 Holme Avenue

215-685-0495

Friday April 19th and May 17th at 10:30 a.m.

Oak Lane Library, 6614 N. 12th Street

215-685-2848

Thursday, May 9th at 10:00 a.m.

Fox Chase Libary, 501 Rhawn Street

215-685-0547

For more information about the book or resources for parents and teachers visit http://www.paonebook.org/.

Get answers to questions about registering for Kindergarten at the Free Library of Philadelphia!

Rachel F. — 2013-01-18T16:00:00-05:00

Registration for kindergarten at the School District of Philadelphia begins on Tuesday January 22, 2013!

The Free Library of Philadelphia is participating in the Kindergarten Registration Information Panel for parents of children who will be attending Kindergarten in the Fall. The first Panel took place last night at the Please Touch Museum and went really well. Parents heard information about how to register for kindergarten at both School District schools (neighborhood schools) and Charter Schools and they got their questions answered.

The second (and last) panel will take place on Tuesday, January 22nd at 6:00 pm at The Parkway Central Library. If you know any parents who missed the first program and are interested in attending the program on Tuesday, please share the attached flyer with them.

To RSVP for your FREE ticket contact
Doria Mitchell at 215-400-4270 or by email at dnmitchell@philasd.org

Free Library of Philadelphia/Drexel University Children's Literature Citation

Rachel F. — 2012-10-03T08:39:00-05:00

Free Library of Philadelphia/Drexel University Children’s Literature Citation

This citation is awarded to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to literature for children and who is from Philadelphia, or has contributed significantly to the advancement of this field in the Philadelphia area.

Congratulations to Eileen Spinelli, winner of the 2012 Free Library of Philadelphia/Drexel University Children's Literature Citation!

On Monday, October 1st at the Annual Pennsylvania Library Association meeting, the 2012 Free Library of Philadelphia/Drexel University Children's Literature Citation was presented to Eileen Spinelli for creating books with real plots, for real children, and pouring compassion and empathy into every single word. For eloquently and passionately dramatizing the lives of working mothers and fathers who find the time to read - and be read to - by the children. For bringing a poet's rich and textured language to the unique perspectives of children's voices and experiences.

Past Citation Recipients:

2011 S. D. Schindler

2010 Susan B. Neuman

2009 David Wiesner

2008 Hedra Packman

2007 Michael Berenstain

2006 Lindsay Barrett George

2005 Lucia Herndon

2004 Peter Catalanotto

2003 Betty Ann Funk

2002 Laurie Halse Anderson

2001 Francenia L. Emery

2000 E. B. Lewis

1998 Donna Jo Napoli

1997 Helen Mae Mullen

1996 Jerry Spinelli

1995 Susan Hirschman

1994 Bernard Waber

1993 Trina Schart Hyman

1992 Jerry Pinkney

1991 Aliki {Liacouras Brandenberg}

1990 Carolyn Croll

1989 Maurice Sendak

1988 Jaqueline Shachter Weiss

1987 Deborah Kogan Ray

1986 Barbara Bates

1985 Muriel Feelings

1984 Carolyn Wicker Field

1983 Tana Hoban

1982 Jan Berenstain and Stan Berenstain

1981 Kristin Hunter

1980 Beth Krush and Joe Krush

1979 Suzanne Hilton

1978 Catherine Crook de Camp and L. Sprague de Camp

1977 Nancy Larrick

1976 Elizabeth Gray Vining

1975 J.B. Lippincott Company

1972 Lloyd Alexander

1970 Carolyn Haywood

1967 Katherine Milhous

1963 Marguerite de Angeli

Teen Tuesdays are Back!

Rachel F. — 2012-10-02T09:38:00-05:00

Hang out, make new friends, eat snacks - Teen Tuesday is back!

Every Tuesday during the school year from 3:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. join us in the Skyline Room on the 4th floor at Parkway Central.

Its Free. It's Fun. There's Food.

Upcoming Events:

October 2nd - PLAY! Video Games

October 9th - (Book 2) Movie

October 16th - 3D Pop Art and Duct Tape

October 20th - BINGO!

Can't get enough? Try out Teen Thursdays - now in the new Teen Center in Philbrick Hall!

Upcoming Thursday programs:

October 4th - Get Stumped - TRIVIA!

October 11th - BYO Board Games

October 18th - It Came From The Library! (Teen Read Week, make your own mask)

October 25th - BYO Board Games

Click here to find more teen events and programs at all branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia!

Parkway Central Library

1901 Vine Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103

For more information call Aurora at 215-686-5372 or email teentuesday@freelibrary.org.

Teen Tuesday is made possible with generous support from the Independence Foundation and the Caroline J.S. Sanders Trust #1.

Books for Kids Starting School for the First Time!

Rachel F. — 2012-08-17T11:05:00-05:00

Starting school is a major milestone in a child’s (and parent’s) life - it can be a little scary for everyone. But not to worry - from funny frogs to worried mice there are lots of great books to share with the children in your life to help them get used to the idea of going to school. Here are some of my favorites:

With charming rhymes, Esme Raji Codell introduces children and parents to all of the delights and fun that are waiting for them in It's Time for Preschool. I especially like the colorful pictures of lively children and teachers enjoying story time, puppets and snacks!

Is Your Buffalo Ready for Kindergarten is a funny take on traditional first-day jitters. A young girl assures her worried friend the Buffalo that even though he's scared to go to kindergarten, as long as he follows the rules and plays nice he'll have lots of fun with the other kids.

Llama Llama Misses Mama is another installment of the funny (and wonderfully rhyming) series by Anna Dewdney. At first Baby Llama is very excited to start preschool - the friends! The games! The songs! But when it’s time for Mama Llama to go, Baby Llama is worried - will she ever come back? (Spoiler alert - she does, and Baby Llama learns to love preschool!)

For more great books about starting school for the first time check here: Starting School Booklist!

Have other favorites? Please share them in the comments!

Fun With Wordless Picture Books!

Rachel F. — 2012-05-15T11:23:00-05:00

It may seem obvious – but wordless picture books are books with no words!

Since there is no text, wordless picture books are a great way to share books with children -- you can even get your child “read” to you. Talk with your child about what is going on in the pictures -- describe what you think the characters are doing or thinking. Try open ended questions that start with one of the 5 w’s (who, what, where, why, when) to encourage your child to interpret what is going on in the pictures. See if you can guess what is going to happen on the next page based on what is happening on the page you are looking at. As they tells you what is happening in the story, it’s a great way for them to learn that stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. How does the story start (beginning)? What happens next (middle)? How does the story end?

For more titles, check out this list of Fun Wordless Picture Books!

Have favorites not on the list? Please share them in the comments!

Celebrate One Book, Every Young Child!

Rachel F. — 2012-04-11T09:55:00-05:00

The Free Library of Philadelphia is celebrating Pennsylvania’s seventh annual One Book, Every Young Child program! This series promotes the importance of reading early and often to children, as well as engaging them in conversation and other activities by bringing books into their lives.

Zachariah OHora, author and illustrator of the 2012 One Book, Every Young Child selection “Stop Snoring, Bernard!” will be visiting three branches of the Free Library of Philadelphia!

One Book, Every Young Child Author Programs - Tuesday, April 24

10:00 a.m. - Philadelphia City Institute, 1905 Locust Street

11:30 a.m. - Walnut Street West, 201 South 40^th Street

3:30 p.m. - Lucien E Blackwell West Philadelphia Regional, 125 South 52^nd Street

One Book, Every Young Child Storytimes

Can’t make it to one of the author visits? Children 3-6 years old and their caregivers are invited to join our children’s librarians for a special storytime featuring the adorable “Stop Snoring, Bernard!”

Wednesday, April 11 at 6:30 p.m.

Torresdale Branch, 3079 Holme Avenue

215-685-0494

Friday, April 13 at 10:30 a.m.

Roxborough Branch, 6245 Ridge Ave

215-685-2550

Saturday, April 21 at 10:30 a.m.

Wadsworth Branch, 1500 Wadsworth Ave

215-685-9293

Monday, April 23^rd at 10:30 am

Kensington Branch, 104 W Dauphin Street

215-685-9996

Tuesday, May 1 at 6:30 p.m.

Cobbs Creek Branch, 5800 Cobbs Creek Parkway

215-685-1973

Tuesday, May 3 at 11:00 a.m.

Northeast Regional Library, 2228 Cottman Ave

215-685-0522

Tuesday, May 8 at 11:00 a.m.

Charles Santore Branch, 932 South 7^th Street

215-686-1766

Wednesday, May 9 at 10:30 a.m.

West Oak Lane Branch, 2000 Washington Lane

215-685-2843

For more information about the book or resources for parents and teachers visit http://www.paonebook.org/

Books about food shopping for preschoolers!

Rachel F. — 2011-11-19T09:50:00-05:00

One of the great traditions of the holiday season is food shopping. This can be a real chore with a preschooler. Before you go shopping try reading one of these charming books about trips to the market. Talk with your child about how you will be going shopping. Then as you shop narrate your trip through the store. For example – “now we’re getting to the store, look we’re shopping for vegetables just like the characters in the book, soon we’ll be checking out with the cashier”. Your child might not understand you just yet but hopefully now shopping is a game and a story. Do you have any favorite books about shopping or food – please share them in the comments!